Great Russian Military Heros Part 3

This is the final post on the three part series on great Russian military leaders

Georgy Konstaninovich Zhukov is one of the former Soviet Union's greatest military heroes, responsible for almost single handily saving the Soviet Union and the Allies from defeat at the hands of the German military.

Early life: Zhukov was born on December 1st 1896 in the Kaluga Oblast region of Russia. Not much is known about his early life except he was born into a poor family. He was apprenticed to work as a furrier in Moscow and was drafted into the Tsar's army when Russia entered the First World War.

Military career: During the First World War Zhukov served with the cavalry where he was awarded the Cross of St. George, Russia's highest military honor, twice. He was promoted to the rank of non-commissioned officer for bravery. After the War he joined the Bolshevik Party where his poverty stricken background helped him immensely. He fought in the Russian Civil War where he recieved the Order of the Red Banner.

By 1930 he was in command of a full brigade. He began to write down theories on a new style of armored warfare, close to the same time the Nazi military leaders were developing ideas for the famed "Blitzkrieg". In 1938 he was placed in charge of the First Russian Mongolian Army in Siberia. Here he was able to conduct a swift and brutal campaign against the advancing Japanese Army in an undeclared Soveit Japanese war that lasted from 1938 to 1939. This culminated in a victory for Zhukov at the battle of Kalikan Gol and is one of the reasons why the Japanese never invaded the Soviet Union. It also helped him to survive Stalin's purges

At the start of the Second World War, known to the Russians as "The Great Patriotic War", he was promoted to a full general but lost his place on the General Staff after falling out with Stalin. After the German invasion of the Soviet Union Zhukov was an outspoken critic of Stalin's stubborn refusal to give ground resulting in massive losses thanks to German encirclements. He was responsible for stopping the German advance on Moscow in 1941 and a year later was assigned to command the entire southern front. His main task was to defend Stalingrad on the Volga River. He succeded in playing the same game the German Army had done and succeded in encircling the Sixth Army in Stalingrad. This was the first Soviet victory of the entire war and afterwards he was appointed command over all Soviet forces. He succeded in lifting the siege of Leninngrad in 1944 and eventually taking Berlin and ending the War.

After the War Zhukov was appointed as commander and military governor of the Soviet Occupation zone in Germany. However, it was thought that he could grow to challenge Stalin's power and he was replaced. Although he did direct the invasion of Hungary in 1956 his reputation made him a serious threat to retain any serious military command. Under Kruschev he was appointed Minister of Defence and Commander in Chief of all ground troops but he was too much of a critic of Krushev's policy and Krushev was paranoid that he was planning a coup. He was stripped of his Party rank and relieved him of his post. Although he was restored to Party favour by Brenshev in 1964 his days as a military officer were over. He died in 1974 and was buried with full military honors.

Legacy: Zhukov was one of the most recognizable leaders of the Second World War and is alomst single handedly responsible for defeating the German invasion of the Soviet Union. He was and still is a hero to the Russian people and even Dwight D. Eisenhower had an immense respect for him. He believed in an aggressive mobile form of warfare similar to the German Blitz and was never afraid to press the attack. The number of medals he obtained during his service is far to long to mention but some of them include the Cross of St. George, the Order of the Red Banner, and the Order of Suvorov (remember him?). In fact he is the only Soviet hero to rightfully earn the Order of the Red Banner four times. A monument stands in his honor in the capital city of Mongolia for his leadership at the Battle of Kalikan Gol. He had a medal named in his honor in 1995 during his 100th birthday. He is also one of the few military leaders who has a planet named after him, discovered by a Soviet astronomer in 1975.

Polish President and staff die in fatal plane crash in Western Russia

Yesterday, Polish President Lech Kaczyński, his wife, and nearly one hundred high ranking politicians and staff were killed as their plane crashed while attempting to land in heavy fog.
In a twist of bitter irony, the plane was en route to attend a memorial for the Katyn massacre, the first one openly supported by the Russian government. Medvedev and Putin offered their condolences to the families of the victims and the Polish people.
The accident is still being investigated, but is believed to be a pilot error due to heavy fog. The pilot was warned that the fog at the airport was too thick, and that he should divert to another airport. The pilot decided to attempt a landing anyways, resulting in everyone on board dying.
Sources:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100410/ap_on_re_eu/eu_russia_plane_crash
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36352097/ns/world_news-europe/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/poland/7579076/Polish-plane-crash-investigators-rule-out-technical-fault.html

1948: The Great Tradgedy of the Russian Musician

For years prior, world renowned composers such as the great Dimitry Shostakovitch, had suffered career and life threatening destruction at the hands of the oppressive Communist Russia. During these darkest years of Russian Music History, the threat was so dangerously present that should any work dare to resemble those of their most hated western counterparts, the composer could very well be shot before Stalin himself. It was not, however, until the Resolution of the Central Committee in February of 1948 that the greatest atrocity of culture would be committed against Russia's own people.
On the surface the Resolution composed was a reaction to an Opera by second rate composer Vano Muradeli titled "The Great Friendship" that had three months earlier been blacklisted with criticisms such as "historically and ideologically incorrect" and "a confused muddle of sounds". This was not, though, the primary focus of the pages and pages of slander that followed. Virtually all soviet composers including those who had gained international acclaim including Shostakovitch (specifically for his 8th and 9th Symphonies), Prokofiev (specifically for his opera War and Peace), Khachaturin, and Miaskovsky were accused of the heinous crime of music "formalism" and pressured to denounce themselves wrong dooers of the state. Even critics of these composers were not spared from the vicious attacks, had they per chance given favorable reviews for blatantly anti-communist music.
Led by Andrei Zhdanov, spokesperson for cultural ideology and Khrennikov, who later became an all powerful figure in the Russian Music Bureaucracy, the draft of their Resolution had four cited goals:

1.To condemn the formalist trend in Soviet music as anti-social, and leading to the liquidation of music.
2.To propose to the Propaganda and Agitation Board of the Central Committee and to the Committee for Artistic Affairs: that they rectify the situation in Soviet music; that they liquidate the failures indicated in the present Resolution; and that they take steps to ensure that Soviet music develops in a realist direction.
3.To call upon Soviet composers to carry out the high demands made by the Soviet people regarding musical creation; everything that weakens our music and hinders its development should be swept away by composers, thereby ensuring an upsurge of creative work that would move Soviet music forward and lead, in all areas of composition, to the kind of valuable, high-quality works that the Soviet people deserve.
4.To approve all administrative measures of the responsible Party and Soviet organs directed towards the improvement of musical affairs.

In response to the reading the the entire Essay the composers were each asked to stand a apologize to their comrades for their deeds.

For example:
Muradeli spoke "How could it be that I failed to introduce a single folk song into the score of my opera?... I have before me a serious task, to realize fully and unequivocally the seriousness of my creative errors, and to correct these errors with ideological honesty in the future."
Shostakovitch spoke "I am deeply grateful for all the criticism contained in the Resolution and I shall still with more determination will work on the musical depiction of the images of the heroic Soviet people.

In a joint letter to Stalin for the public humiliation all the composers together wrote such degrading remarks as "We are tremendously grateful the the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party and personally to you, Comrade Stalin, for the severe and yet profoundly just criticism of the present state of Soviet music".

Obviously any sense of idealism in Russian art came to an abrupt halt for the decade following this event. Most unfortunately this obscene oppression lingered until after the death of Stalin when in 1957 the All-Union Congress of Music allowed for more artistic freedom. Thankfully a 1958 decree exonerated those Musicians attacked in 1948, restoring the honor they had been most unjustly stripped of.

Below I have included a link to access the entirety of "The Resolution" in case you are curious as to the extent of the public spanking. It's a long and insufferable document but can be insightful even if skimmed...
http://www.sprkfv.net/journal/three16/resolutionin.html

Russian Baby names

I am so used to hearing only a select handful of Russian names so I decided to research the top 10 Russian boy and girl names. I found a list!
Boy names:
1. Lev (which means Lion)
2. Aleksandr (defender of mankind)
3. Mikhail (who is like God)
4. Sacha (shorter version of Alex)
5. Nikolai (victory of the people)
6. Gavriil (God is my strength)
7. Konstantin (steadfast, everlasting)
8. Vasili (king)
9. Maksim (the greatest)
10. Luka (Lucania)

Girl Names:
1. Galina (Light)
2. Nikita (unconquered)
3. Raisa (rose)
4. Natasha (born at Christmas)
5. Kalista (most beautiful)
6. Nadiya (hope)
7. Tatiana (fairy princess)
8. Valentina (healthy or strong)
9. Veronika (victory bringer)
10. Zenya (well-born or noble)

New ideas for Russian novels! My favorite name is not listed on this though, Arkady.

Punk'd: Lenin

A series of pranks has been occurring all over Russia for the past few months. The Victim? Vladimir Lenin. Several statues have been defaced, disrespected, and downright abused. While most people have found it amusing if a bit immature there are a few older citizens and a few local communist groups who are up in arms.

The pranks have ranged from costumes to paint to explosives and the culprits have managed to get away with it all. I only have one question.

If we blame this on the Jackass guys do you think they'd be kidnapped by Putin's secret police before they can finish filming their third movie? Because that would work for me.

The Graffiti of Pripyat

All of the images shown above can be found scattered around the city of Priypyat. Most Russian graffiti is characterized by bright colors and cheerful, if often lewd, images. The graffiti of Pripyat on the other hand, is haunted by ghostly black and white figures, many of whom are in obvious pain.

The artists say their pictures symbolize the loss of innocence.

Most feature children, or at least the shadows they left behind, doing things like crying or playing or screaming. Others show the shadows of looters that ransacked the city after it was abandoned. Why was Pripyat abandoned?

Prior to April 26, 1986 it was a healthy, if not thriving, industrial city. It was home to the families who got their livelihood from the Chernobyl power plant, mothers and fathers and children. Lots of children.

There are no children in Pripyat anymore. Most left after the reactors malfunctioned. Some died.

It's their ghosts that haunt the walls of the city.

Unit 9 Blog

The World Will Never Surrender to Terrorism
The explosions that ripped through the Moscow metro on March 29 made us realize that the terrorist threat is not a matter of the past.
Terrorist acts do not have physical damage as their only goal. Terrorists follow their insane and perverted ideas to kill everyone who disagrees with them. They do not distinguish between old or young, military or civil, Orthodox, Christian or Muslim. Those, who send suicide bombers to explode their bombs and kill innocent people, pursue other goals.
A terrorist act is a method, which terrorists use to send their terrible messages to the world. It is a way to humiliate an enemy and demonstrate power. Even if special services have information about a terrorist act, it is very difficult to prevent an extremist attack. Every terrorist act strikes a serious blow on the state.
Any terrorist act is performed to entail a reaction from the general public, from the state and from those, who sympathize with terrorists. The state can make concessions to terrorists as a result of an attack. For example, it happened in Spain, when terrorists exploded a dozen of bombs in commuter trains in Madrid in March 2004. Over 190 people were killed in the attacks. A new government came to power in the country after the attacks and ordered to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq. Many perceived it as a demonstration of weakness in front of terrorists.
State can show a different reaction and restrict democratic liberties within the scope of struggle against terrorism. If it happens, one can assume that terrorists have reached their goals and transformed the society which they chose to manipulate.
A terrorist threat does not limit itself to human losses only. It triggers xenophobia, suspicion and fear among people of different nationalities and confessions. People must unite in front of a terrorist threat and conduct a dialogue to decrease the efficiency of extremist activities. A dialogue between civilizations is supposed to touch upon the general public, young people, first and foremost, rather than political elites.
There is no universal recipe for the anti-terrorist struggle and there will not be. Terrorism changes all the time and meets the reality of today, not of the past. Blocking financial channels, destroying organized structures and terrorist communication networks is essential. However, a victory in the struggle against terrorist requires a lot more: it should be a victory for people’s minds. Terrorists must not see any conditions which they could use to find their followers.

Russian river Cruises UNIT 9!!!

These cruises typically last 12-16 days and port in cities for passengers to get off and explore. There are plenty of activities to do on board as well. This website gives you all the details, you can customize the trip you want as well.

Russia's two largest cities, Moscow and St. Petersburg, are featured on sailings that combine the Volga River, Moscow Canal and other waterways. In Moscow, visit the immense Red Square, which is bordered by colorful onion domes of St. Basil's Cathedral and the stylish 19th-century facade of the GUM department store. Highlights of St. Petersburg, Russia's cultural capital, include the world-famous Hermitage museum and the Peter and Paul Fortress.

Many Volga cruises visit Uglich, one of Russia's oldest towns, and Volgograd, formerly called Stalingrad and the site of one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. See the unique wooden architecture of Kizhi Island, including a cathedral of 22 domes constructed without the use of a single nail.

Volga River cruises typically are part of longer itineraries that include hotel stays. They offer considerable savings over traveling the same itinerary on your own, because river cruise operators are able to negotiate low group rates on hotels, transportation and sightseeing excursions, passing the savings on to you. With so much included in one price, Volga cruises are easy to budget.

Russian Cakes

Ok, so since Unit 9 is on everyone's favorite subject, the Instrumental Case... I mean, food, here are some delicious-looking Russian pastries.

Корзина, or "baskets" are little meringue flowers in pastry baskets.... Clever, huh?


Картошка, or potato cakes, are named after the root veggie they resemble. But they aren't made with potatoes, unfortunately. Rather, they are a yummy mixture of walnuts, cocoa, breadcrumbs, and other cake-like ingredients.
Сметанник is a sour-cream cake. While sour cream in a dessert might sound a little weird to most Americans, my grandmother makes sour-cream cookies, and the sour cream makes them so very moist!

Should anyone choose to make any of these yummy things and bring them into class, I will be eternally grateful.

Random misspellings have been included for your viewing pleasure!

Bomber in Russian attacks is 17-year old Chechen widow

One of the suspects in last week's Moscow bombings is a 17-year-old widow of an Islamist militant from the North Caucasus. She is suspected of blowing herself up in suicide attacks that killed 40 people in Moscow.

More than 50 people were killed and another 100 injured in suicide bombings this week in the Moscow metro and in a town in the turbulent North Caucasus region of Dagestan, raising fears of a new bombing campaign against the Russian heartland.

She has been named as Dagestani-born Dzhennet Abdurakhmanova, the widow of 30-year-old Umalat Magomedov, a prominent insurgent killed by Russian forces on December 31.

Abdurakhmanova also used the name of Dzhanet Abdullayeva, the source said.

Magomedov, who was shown in the photographs holding a pistol, styled himself as the "Emir of the mujahideen of the Vilayat Dagestan," a local Islamist group, the source said.

Officials said two female suicide bombers -- known in the Russian media as "Black Widows" -- killed at least 40 people on packed Moscow metro trains during the rush hour on Monday.

"Black Widows" is a term for the widows of Islamic militants killed by Russian forces.

The first bomb tore through a metro train just before 8 a.m. as it stood at the Lubyanka station, close to the headquarters of the FSB. A second bomb was detonated less than 40 minutes later in a train waiting at the Park Kultury metro station.

The suicide bombings in Moscow and Dagestan follow a surge of violence over the past year in the patchwork of North Caucasus republics, where Russia has fought two wars against Chechen separatists since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union.

Islamist Chechen rebels claimed responsibility on Wednesday for the Moscow metro bombings and threatened further attacks against Russian cities.

Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov, who calls himself the "Emir of the Caucasus Emirate," said he had ordered the twin suicide bombings in Moscow to "destroy infidels" and in revenge for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's policies in the North Caucasus.